Papa
by FictionInReality
Summary: Ella’s not here right now. Please leave a message.” Luke and his granddaughter. Fluff. JJ undertones. RoryLuke fatherdaughter interactions. 3 new chapters 12906
1. Chapter 1

_A/N- This is a one-shot (probably) that just flowed out of me on a Monday night._

_Dedicated to: My own Papa, who I miss like crazy. Hopefully he'll come up from Florida to visit by Thanksgiving._

_Disclaimer- I don't own GG. I don't even own a tophat._

Papa

Luke watched the little girl sitting across the counter from him. Her straight brown hair bounced up and down as she looked from her plate to her grandfather, her blue eyes shining.

"Papa, I don't want oatmeal."

"Eat it."

"But papa..."

"No buts, young lady."

"Don't 'young lady' me, old man!" She joked. Luke grinned and leaned over to cut a banana on a plate in front of her,

"Eat."

"Papa, I hate oatmeal."

"You just hate it because your mother and grandmother hate it."

"Nuh-uh!"

"Yes, Ella. You do. You loved it until you were talking to your mom and she started talking about how much she disliked oatmeal." The little girl looked down,

"Maybe..."

"Eat." The little girl, Ella, looked down and took a spoonful of oatmeal, shoving it into her mouth as she scrunched up her nose,

"This tastes different than usual."

"I put cinnamon in it." She nodded and fell silent for a moment and Luke watched her with interest. She was a fascinating little girl, at four, reminding him of his wife in her exuberance for life and relentless sense of humor.

"Papa?"

"Yeah, El?"

"Tell me about the day I was born." Luke sighed,

"Again?"

"Please, Papa? For your Ella-bella?" He chuckled,

"You know how to work that nickname, don't you?" She nodded and he sat down on the stool next to her, pulling her onto his lap, "Well, it was a cold December day. Your mommy, grandma, Uncle Jack, Aunt Ava and I were sitting on the couch watching Willy Wonka. Your mommy, grandma, and Uncle Jack were eating Pillsbury cookies..."

"And you and Ava were eating apples..."

"Right. And Ava and I were eating apples. And then, at the part when Violet says..."

"_I want an Oompa-Loompa now!_"

"Right. Right then, your mommy realized that she had a bad stomachache. When the stomachache went away and came back, your grandma said, 'I think she's having the baby.' We all got really nervous and we called your daddy at work and we dropped Ava and Jack off at Sookie's house..."

"And Davy and Martha thought that you were gonna leave them forever."

"That's right. They did think that. So we left and we took your mommy to the hospital and walked up to the lady at the desk and your grandma says..."

"'My baby's having a baby.'"

"Why am I even telling you this story?"

"No, go on, Papa."

"But you know the whole thing."

"I'm sorry." She looked down and Luke noticed tears beginning to well up in his granddaughter's eyes,

"Don't be sorry, Ella-bella. I just feel like it's silly for me to tell you the story when you know it already." She shook her head,

"You tell it better." Luke rolled his eyes,

"So much like your grandma..."

"That's why you love me so much." Luke shook his head,

"And you milk it."

"Yeah. And?"

"And that's it... Ok, so the nurse told asked us how far apart the contractions were."

"What are contractions, Papa?"

"Stomachaches that tell you how long until a baby is born."

"Ok."

"So we told her and she told us to go back home and come back in three hours."

"And grandma didn't like that answer."

"No, she did not. She said 'Listen lady, my grandchild is not going to be born at home because checkout isn't until noon! Gimme a room or you'll deal with me on three cups of espresso during my daughter's labor. And you will not like that option, I promise you!'" Ella giggled and looked up into Luke's blue eyes as he continued, "So the lady got your mommy a room and mommy sat in there with a cup of ice chips..."

"A few cups of ice chips."

"Yeah, a few cups of ice chips. She threw them at the nurses and the doctors and your daddy..."

"But not you and grandma."

"But not grandma and me. No. So we stayed with her and when it was time for you to be born, your daddy and grandma went in with your mommy..."

"But you didn't because you wanted to check on Jack and Ava..." Luke blushed,

"Yeah, sweetheart, I had to make sure they were ok... So a little while later, your daddy came out and said, 'We have a baby girl...'"

"'A beautiful baby girl. Her grandma won't let go of her.'"

"That's right. And I went in to see your mommy and she and grandma told me that your name was Lorelai Hannah Mariano..."

"But then you called me Ella..."

"Right. I called you Ella and your mommy got all excited and went..."

"'That's it! That's her nickname!' And you got to hold me..."

"Well, that's not all. Your mommy said to me, 'Would you like to meet your granddaughter?' And I picked you up and you were the most beautiful granddaughter in the history of granddaughters."

"And ever since then..."

"You've been my Ella-bella."

"Right." She curled up against his chest and fell silent again. After a moment, she looked up at him again,

"Papa, why doesn't mommy call you 'daddy'?" Luke sighed; he'd discussed this with his own children before, but never with his granddaughter,

"That's kinda complicated, El."

"Papa, it's not compstilated."

"Complicated," Luke corrected.

"Complicated."

"Right."

"It's not complicated, Papa. Mommy loves you. You're her daddy, just like my daddy is mine."

"Well, that's kinda hard to understand, Ella." She shook her head,

"No it isn't. She always tells people that you're her daddy. And that you and grandma did a good job growing her."

"Raising her," he corrected again.

"Right. That. So why doesn't mommy call you 'daddy?'" Luke sighed,

"Because I wasn't the one who made her. She has another daddy, too."

"Who's that?"

"Christopher."

"I met him a few times. I like you better." Luke laughed,

"You just say that cuz I give you cake."

"Nuh-uh!" He began to tickle her and she pleaded, "No! Papa! No, please, papa, stop!"

"Ok, ok. I'm done." As Ella regained her breath, she coughed out,

"You're mommy's daddy though, right?" Luke sighed, resigned,

"Yes, Ella. I'm mommy's daddy."

"Even though you didn't make her?"

"Even though I didn't make her."

"Cuz you love her, right?"

"Right. Cuz I love her just as much as I love Ava and Jack and you," he said honestly. Ella smiled, satisfied with the answer. She slid off his lap and turned to run up the stairs.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"I left my Colonel Clucker upstairs." Luke nodded and the little girl disappeared up the steps just as the front door jingled.

"Hi, Luke," Rory greeted.

"Hey, Rory."

"Where's Ella?"

"Upstairs getting her doll. She'll be right back." Rory nodded,

"Ok," she stepped up next to him at the counter, "Is this my daughter's?"

"Yeah."

"I thought she hated oatmeal?" Luke laughed,

"Only sometimes."

"Did she behave?"

"She was great. We had a few classic 'Luke-Ella' talks."

"Oh," said Rory, sitting down, "What about?"

"Everything, really. She made me tell her the story of the day she was born again."

"She loves that one."

"I've noticed."

"Did she say anything else?" Luke sighed and looked away,

"Well, she was curious... she asked why you call me 'Luke' instead of 'Dad'."

"Oh no."

"Yeah." Rory sighed,

"She's been asking me that a lot lately, too."

"Yeah?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Look, Rory... I don't want you to feel pressured by her asking. She's four. She's gonna ask. Hell, when your sister was four, she asked why your mom got to wear skirts and why I had to wear pants every day."

"Ava has quite an imagination."

"Yeah. So... don't feel pressured. Kids are gonna ask." Rory grinned,

"Hey, Luke?"

"Yeah, Rory?"

"She got me thinking... You know you are my dad, right?" Luke looked up into Rory's shining blue eyes,

"I've always had the idea."

"Good. Cuz you are."

"Good. Cuz you're as much my daughter as Ava."

"I always kinda knew," she grinned slyly. She turned her head as she heard Ella's light footsteps running towards her,

"Mommy!"

"Hi, angel! Did you have fun with Papa Luke today?"

"Yeah, mommy! Lots of fun!"

"Ok, well you're gonna spend the day with him in a few days too."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," Rory said, a twinkle in her eye, "Ask Papa how to cook mashed potatoes next time you're here."

"Ok."

"Say bye, Ella."

"Bye papa," Ella said, hugging him around his waist. He hugged her back,

"Bye, bella." Rory took Ella by the hand and waved to Luke,

"Bye, dad. See you tomorrow."


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N- Due to positive response to this (former) one-shot, I've decided to make this a series of one-shots, updated as inspiration strikes. Thanks for all of your reviews!_

_A/N 2- I apologize for the Willy Wonka mixup. What's sad is that I've seen the movie literally 50 times. Must've been mixed up because I wrote it at 12:30 at night..._

_Dedicated: To papa who I miss like crazy._

_Disclaimer: Own my new OC mix 5, but not Gilmore Girls._

Baseball

"Star hitter Lorelai Hannah Mariano steps up to the plate and outfielder Ava Hayleigh Danes moves out; this kid can hit!"

"Get'm, Ella!" nine-year-old Jack screamed from the sidelines over his father's commentary.

"Don't worry, Jack! I got it covered!" Luke wound up the pitch and stopped before he tossed the ball underhand to his granddaughter. She swung and missed and kicked at the dirt,

"Bad wind! I got a bad wind! Throw another one, papa."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure!"

"You don't wanna try basketball?" Ella shifted her weight onto her left leg and narrowed her eyes at Luke,

"Lucas Danes, I said I wanna be a baseball star, and I'm gonna be a baseball star!" Luke threw his hands up in defeat,

"Ok, ok. Here goes the curveball." Once more, Ella swung the bat, this time spinning her entire body around. Unfortunately, she did not make any contact with the ball, and she tripped over her own feet, landing tush-first in the dirt. While Ava and Jack started to laugh, Luke ran over to his granddaughter,

"You ok, bella?" Ella, tears in her eyes, looked up at Luke.

He expected her to cry.

He expected her to scream.

He expected her to act like the fallen child that she was.

Instead, she surprised him.

She threw her head back and laughed uncontrollably.

"Pa... Papa..."

"Yeah, Ella?"

"My tush... I fell... on my butt..."

"What?"

"I fell, Papa! I fell on my butt!" She coughed out, laughing. Upon hearing Ella's confession, Jack and Ava burst into heavier laughter. As he watched his two children and granddaughter laughing hysterically, Luke burst out laughing. He pulled the now six-year-old Ella into his arms and began to tickle her.

They ignored the sound of the backdoor opening and Lorelai and Rory's footsteps coming towards them as they continued to laugh.

"What's going on out here?" Lorelai asked, scooping up seven-year-old Ava.

"Mommy... mommy, Ella fell..."

"Ella _fell_?" Rory shrieked, looking to Luke, "Ella _fell _and you're all laughing!"

"She's fine, Rory," Luke said between breaths.

"She's _fine_? She's got tears in her eyes!"

"From laughing so hard!" Rory sighed,

"You make me so nervous sometimes, Ella."

"Oh, I helped raise you and you turned out fine. Sure, you ate a couple of dirt clods along the way, but that was your mother's fault. I wasn't even around when you ate them. I was just there to give you something to ease the pain afterwards."

"Dad!" Rory shrieked, which made Luke laugh harder.

Luke still vividly remembered the day Rory had first started calling him 'dad'. It had been as amazing as when his other two children had first said 'daddy' or when Ella's first word was 'papa' (shortly thereafter followed by 'Ja-deward', which was translated to 'Jon Stewart'). Even more of a fond memory was Lorelai's reaction upon first hearing the words come out of Rory's mouth.

_They had been eating dinner the night after Luke and Ella's talk at the diner. Ava, then five, Jack, then seven, and Ella, then four were playing in the den as Luke cooked, and Lorelai and Rory talked. _

"So then Kirk accused Ella and Ava of taking Kirkette's mailman costume."

"What? Why?"

"I don't know! He just walked up to Luke and me while we were walking through town with the kids."

"Was Ava ok?" Lorelai laughed,

"Are you kidding? Ava's a Danes. She rolled her eyes and told Kirk that 'he was ridiculous and he could shove his mailbox where the sun don't shine'"

"Very ladylike."

"Luke was not happy with her."

"Oh, please." Lorelai laughed,

"Well, he pretended like he wasn't happy with her. Jack gave her a high-five when he thought we weren't looking." Both girls giggled and they heard Luke call from the kitchen,

"Lorelai! Rory! Will one of you set the table?" Both girls instinctively looked at each other. Lorelai raised a finger to the side of her nose,

"Shot not."

"What?"

"I don't know. Jack does it all the time." Rory groaned,

"Uggh, fine, I'll do it." She got up and scurried to the kitchen. As Rory set the dishes out, she went over her and Luke's plan for telling the family of Rory's calling Luke "Dad". They were going to announce it during dinner.

"Is Jess coming to dinner tonight, Rory?" Neither noticed Lorelai standing quietly in the doorway.

"Yeah. He's coming after work. He said he'll be here by six thirty."

"Ok. Don't forget to set a plate for him. I've got another steak going for him."

"Ok, dad."

Neither would later be able remember who noticed Lorelai's shriek of surprise first or who was the one who'd uttered 'Crap. There goes the plan.' All they could remember was Lorelai crying tears of happiness and making Rory call Luke 'dad' repeatedly for the rest of the evening.

Two years later, it had become second nature to Rory, who grabbed her little brother, still writhing with laughter over Ella's tripping.

"Are you guys _still _playing baseball? It's been an hour!"

"It has not!" Luke scoffed, "It's been twenty-five minutes."

"Same boring difference for the same boring game," Lorelai commented. Ava looked up into her mother's eyes,

"It's not boring, mommy!"

"I beg to differ."

"No, really, grandma," Ella stated, climbing out of Luke's arms, "It's a lot of fun. I'm gonna be a big baseball star for the Yankees when I grow up."

"Oh yeah? Has your papa put that thought into your head?" Ella shook her head vehemently, her brown curls bouncing from side to side,

"No. I thought of it all by myself!"

"And her papa just helped it along," Luke winked, "Hey, why don't you girls play with us?" Lorelai's eyes went wide,

"Silly rabbit."

"Lorelai..."

"What?" Lorelai and Rory shared a look,

"Can we be quarterbacks?" Jack started to laugh and Luke shook his head,

"Rory, quarterbacks... You know what? No. No you can't. But you can be catcher." Rory shrugged,

"Ok."

"Yeah! Rory, be on our team!" Jack cheered as Lorelai's mouth dropped open,

"Traitor."

"C'mon, mommy, you can be on our team," said Ava soothingly. Lorelai sighed,

"Fine." Luke handed his wife a glove and sent his eldest daughter to the end of the line. He knelt over and narrowed his eyes,

"You ready, bella?" Ava stamped her foot in indignation, and Lorelai followed,

"Daddy!"

"Luke, you can't ask the other team if they're _ready_ for a kickoff!" Luke looked from his wife to his daughter to his granddaughter, trying to figure out who to answer. Resigned, he shrugged and ignored them, repeating,

"El? You ready?" Ella nodded,

"Throw the heat, Papa man."

"Papa man?"

"Throw it," she repeated. He wound up and pitched to her. This time, she made direct contact with the wiffle ball, sending it above Luke's head, past Ava and Lorelai, and into Babette and Morey's yard.

As Ella ran the bases, an uncontrollable grin overcoming her features, Jack cheered, Ava stared after the ball, Luke clapped and laughed, and Rory and Lorelai both allowed their jaws to drop.

"Ella!" Rory breathed.

"I told you, mommy," Ella said, Jack slapping her hand, "I'm gonna be the next star of the Yankees."


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N- Thanks for your reviews, guys. I figured we need some fluff on this site. I'm glad you guys like. Don't be shy about reviewing this chapter too._

_Dedicated- To Papa. And my best friend Ally, because she knows without me having to say anything._

_Disclaimer: I bought Donnie Darko on DVD yesterday. I never bought Gilmore Girls. Still belongs to AS-P._

Daddies

"Luke, have you seen my keys?"

"Ugh, Lorelai, not again!"

"What? I swear I put them down on the kitchen counter!... Or the coffee table... Or in Ava's room?" Luke sighed,

"Third time, Lorelai! The third time this week!"

"I've found them every time, though."

"No you haven't. One of the kids has found them every time." Lorelai shook her head,

"Oh, no. Come. Help me look in the den." As Luke lifted the ottoman and Lorelai threw the couch cushions askew, the front door opened.

"Hello? Anybody home?"

"In here, Ella!" Six-year-old Ella skipped in,

"Hi Papa," she kissed her grandfather's cheek and then her grandmother's, "Hi Grandma," Ella fished into her pockets and pulled out a shiny keychain, "Grandma, you left your keys in the door."

"Ah! Bless you, child. Jack! Ava! Call off the search! Ella found them." Jack and Ava came running down the stairs, each looking more than slightly disheveled.

"Sure, Ella's here two seconds and she finds the keys," Jack quipped.

"Luck," Ava groaned, rubbing at her feet, sore from running from place to place, trying to find her mother's keys. As Lorelai carefully put her keys into her purse, Luke turned to his granddaughter,

"Where are your mom and dad?"

"In the car. They'll be out in a second. Mommy took out daddy's Led Zeppelin and replaced it with The Who. Daddy's fighting to get his Zeppelin back."

"Ok." Ella ran up the stairs to Ava and Jack, and the three excitedly climbed the stairs to Ava's room, which was next door to the room that Ella had claimed as her own for the nights she'd spent over.

As Lorelai pulled on her coat, the front door opened,

"Mom? Dad?"

"In here, Rory!" Rory rounded the corner, kissing each of her parents on the cheek,

"Where are the kids?"

"Upstairs."

"Ok, we should get going." Jess came through the front door,

"Hey, Luke. Hey, Lorelai."

"Hey, honey. You ready for a fun-filled day of elementary school kids?"

"Always." Lorelai called up the stairs,

"Kids?"

"We're in Ella's room!" Luke rolled his eyes; his granddaughter had not only claimed the room as her own, but she'd managed to redesign it without lifting a paintbrush. Pictures of her family, drawings she'd made, and her own schoolwork adorned the wall. Her toys were in a toy chest against the wall. The bedspread had become Ava's spare _Little Mermaid_ sheets. Ella slept over anywhere between two and four times a month, just to give her parents a night to themselves, and Jack and Ava occasionally slept at Rory and Jess' house.

"Well, come down! We need to talk to you!" Three sets of small footsteps approached the stairs and barreled down.

"You're going?" asked Jack.

"Yeah."

"Mommy, who's going again?" Ava asked, scratching at a scab on her arm.

"Ave, mommy and Rory are going out for a girls' day. Daddy and Jess are watching you. And stop picking that thing." Ava's hands fell to her side,

"Sorry."

"It's ok. Come. We're going. Hugs and kisses all around." The kids skipped down the stairs and threw their arms around their mothers, then switching and saying goodbye to their respective sister or grandmother. The two women waved goodbye to their husbands and children, who turned to Luke and Jess.

"Let's play a game," suggested Jack.

The two men and three children sat around the coffee table for the next two hours, playing two games of Clue (Of which Ava and Ella each won one), one game of Life (won by Jess), and a game of Pretty, Pretty Princess (won by a very conflicted Jack). When Ella announced, climbing onto her father's lap,

"I'm bored." Luke stood up and stretched,

"What do you guys wanna do now?" Ava shrugged,

"Can we cook something, daddy?" Luke nodded,

"I don't see why not."

"Yeah, well, while you're doing that, I'm gonna clean up the board games," announced Jess as the others stood up. The girls skipped to the kitchen and Jack and Luke walked side-by-side.

"Dad?"

"Yeah, Jack?"

"Don't tell mom about the Pretty, Pretty Princess thing." Luke laughed,

"It'll be our secret, Jacky."

"And make sure the girls don't either!"

"I will."

"Thank you, dad."

"No problem," They entered the kitchen to find the girls pulling everything out of the fridge. Luke stepped back, "Woah, woah! Itchy, Scratchy! What are you doing?"

"Getting ready to cook, daddy."

"Yeah, papa. We're getting the ingredients."

"No, no, girls. If you're gonna cook, the first thing you do is get out the cookbook and read the ingredients." Ella shrugged,

"I thought we were gonna cook something that we created."

"Tell you what. I have a recipe in there that I cooked for your mommy when she got pregnant with you. We'll cook that." Ava put her hands on her hips,

"What about something that's mine?"

"That is yours, Ave. We found out Rory was gonna have Ella the day that you came home from the hospital. This cake is the 'Ava's birth-Jack's a big brother-Rory's having a baby' cake," the kids stared at him, "Your moms named it."

"Oh."

"Jack, Ava, go find my cookbook."

"Which?"

"The one that has mom and Rory's drawings on the front." Jack and Ava ran off to the den, where Jess was finishing cleaning up the game.

"Papa?"

"Yeah, Bel?"

"How come it's 'Ava's being born' cake, 'Jack's big brother' cake, but not an 'Ella' anything cake?"

"What? Ella, I told you that I made that cake when we found out that your mommy was gonna have you."

"No," Ella said, badly hiding the tears welling up in her eyes, "You said you made it when you found out mommy was having a baby. Not me. That wasn't a cake for me."

"Oh, Ella, it was," he said, picking her up.

"Then how come my name wasn't on it?"

"Because we didn't know you were gonna be you, Bel."

"But it's still partly my cake?"

"Of course, Bella."

"Ok," she wiped at her eyes and Luke squeezed her, kissing her temple.

Jack and Ava re-entered the kitchen, cookbook in hand,

"We found it, daddy."

"Did you put the rest of the books back the way they were?" Ava coyly shook her head, a mischievous grin overtaking her features, "Fix them, please. Both of you."

Jack dropped the book and he and Ava ran back out as Jess sauntered into the kitchen,

"What happened in here?" Luke put Ella down,

"The girls decided that to make cake, we need bacon."

"What?"

"They pulled everything out of the fridge."

"Ella, did you do that?" Jess asked, turning to his daughter.

"Yes, daddy. But we didn't know what we were going to be cooking." Jess rolled his eyes,

"Well, clean up," he instructed, pushing a stray hair away from his daughter's face and kissing her forehead. As she put the bacon away and Luke pulled out the pans for the cake, Jess whispered to him,

"What happened?"

"Nothing big. But I'd suggest putting her to sleep early tonight."

"Ok." Ava and Jack came back in and Luke instructed them and Ella to wash their hands.

The two men pulled up chairs for the three children and helped them cook, pouring the ingredients into the bowl. Each child broke an egg, and Luke went to get the chocolate chips to put in, but he stopped when he heard the doorbell ring.

"I'll be right back. Jess, two cups of chocolate chips." Luke opened the front door to Kirk, standing with a little girl, a virtual clone of her father.

"Kirk," Luke greeted. Then, with an impatient sigh, he added, "Kirkette."

"Luke, yes, hello."

"What can I do for you?" Luke asked, closing the door behind him.

"I would like to speak to you about your daughter and granddaughter."

"What about them, Kirk?"

"Well, according to my Kirkette, your Ella borrowed her pen and didn't return it."

"What?"

"Ella. Little girl. Your daughter." Luke narrowed his eyes,

"Ella's my granddaughter."

"What?"

"Ella. She's my granddaughter."

"Ok, I'm confused. Who are your children again? I know that there's one named Joe..."

"Get to the point, Kirk."

"Well, one of them... Ella... Avon... borrowed a pen from my daughter and did not give it back."

"Well, I'll ask them about it, Kirk."

"And the other," Kirk forged on, "promised to play with Kirkette at recess and never did. I ask that you speak to the children about their behavior."

"I'll get right on that."

"Good. Now, may I interest you in some Girl Scout cookies?" Luke was about to respond with failing patience, but he heard Jess' distressed calls from inside,

"Luke, I think you'd better come in here!" Luke looked at Kirk and Kirkette,

"I've gotta go. I'll talk to the girls about it. Goodbye, Kirk. Kirkette." Luke spun and opened the door to the house, jogging to the kitchen.

"What happened here?" Jess stood in the corner laughing,

"I went to answer my cell phone in the den and I came back and... well, you can see what happened."

Ella and Ava, each sporting a Cheshire-cat grin, were covered in cake batter. It was on their noses, in their hair, on their shirts, and all over their hands.

"Girls, what did you do?"

"We wanted some batter."

"I tried to stop them, dad," Jack said, shaking his head. He was clean save for a spot of batter on his cheek.

"Ava, Ella, bath. Now."

"But daddy..."

"Ava. Now."

"Papa, I..."

"Ella. Go."

"Daddy?" Ella asked, turning to her father.

"Go, El. I'm with your papa on this one." The girls stomped upstairs, whispering to each other,

"Now we can't help bake the cake!"

"We're not that messy!" Luke ran upstairs and turned the water on for the girls, instructing them to turn it off when it got to the line that he and Lorelai had drawn on the tub. He ran back downstairs, where Jess was cleaning up.

"I got that."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. Why don't you help Jack pour the batter into the pan?"

"Ok."

Luke mopped up the mess and, ten minutes later, ran upstairs to check on the girls. He pulled them out of the tub and sent them into their bedrooms, pulling out pajamas from each of their drawers. As he helped Ava button her 'Cinderella' pajama top, they heard the front door open,

"Hello?"

"Anybody here?"

"Mommy!" Ava called, breaking away and running down the stairs. Ella followed her, skipping the stairs two at a time.

"Hi, girls!" Lorelai greeted, opening her arms to hug them, Jack, already there, shifting to her right. Jess came in and kissed his wife,

"How was your day?"

"Good. How were they?"

"They were... exciting." Rory kissed Ella's head and pulled back,

"Did you take a bath?"

"Papa and daddy made Ava and me take a bath."

"How come?" Luke kissed Lorelai,

"They... took two baths."

"Dad, what happened?"

"One in cake batter and one in a tub." Lorelai and Rory looked at each other,

"There's cake?" Luke laughed,

"For after dinner."

"So what did you do today?" asked Lorelai, putting her arm around her son and taking her youngest daughter's hand in hers as they all walked into the kitchen.

"We played games! And I won Clue, and Ava won Clue," Ella said excitedly from her mother's hip.

"You both won Clue?"

"We played twice. And Jess won Life," announced Ava, "And Jacky won..."

"Nothing! I didn't win anything!" Jack said defensively. Ella leaned over to Jack,

"Don't worry, Jack. I think you're the prettiest princess."


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N- Thanks for the reviews! Keep them coming!_

_A/N 2- As of this chapter, Ella's 7, Ava's 8, and Jack's 10. Last chapter, Ella was 6, Ava was 7, and Jack was 9._

_Dedicated- To heroes. Yours, mine, and ours. Whether they be cops, celebrities, or just someone who you love more than anything, this chapter is dedicated to them._

_Disclaimer: I only own Ella, Ava, and Jack. And Amy can take them if she wants. I'm just playing with them for a while._

Heroes

_Mrs. Russo's 2nd graders: Homework due this week  
Due Monday: Math worksheet, writing worksheet  
Due Tuesday: Reading log, math worksheet  
Due Wednesday: Reading log  
Due Thursday: None  
Due Friday: Hero Project_Ella stared at the last words on the page. "Hero Project".

She knew that her classmates would be making collages and coloring pictures of their favorite superheroes. She knew there would be plentiful pictures of Superman and Batman from the boys and many of Barbie and Cinderella from the girls. She knew each picture would be accompanied by the words "I want to be just like insert name here when I grow up." She also knew that it made no sense to her.

Batman and Superman were nice and all, saving the world, but they didn't have anybody to love. Lois Lane was ok, sure, but every time she watched Superman, she asked her parents why they didn't love each other like her own parents and grandparents did. She liked Cinderella and loved the movie, but decided that she'd rather be Ella Mariano and not have to live with evil stepsisters for seventeen years before falling in love and becoming a princess. _Besides,_ she'd told her grandmother, _it would be impossible to play baseball in that dress_.

And Barbie? Ella had to laugh at that one. Why would you want to be a plastic doll who can't even stand up in her own shoes?

The minute she'd heard about the project, Ella'd known who she wanted to do the project about and how she wanted to present it.

However, now that she was seated at the desk in her bedroom, dwarfed by an oversized desk chair, she couldn't figure out how to get started. Sighing, she slipped out of her chair, picking up her Colonel Clucker, and ran downstairs. She pulled out her parents' photo albums and threw them on the floor, opening one and tearing through the pages.

"Ella?" asked Jess, walking into the room.

"Yes, daddy?"

"What are you doing?"

"Looking at pictures."

"I can see that. Why?"

"Cuz I need spirination."

"What?"

"Spirination. You know. Like when you need spirination for a new book, you have a special day with mommy and me."

"Baby, do you mean inspiration?" Ella shrugged,

"Could be it."

"Ok... well, why?" Ella sighed,

"Because..."

"Because why?"

"Because of the _project_."

"Oh, of course, the project," Jess said, confused, "What project?"

"The project Mrs. Russo gave us," she said, pulling out her favorite picture and examining it, "The one about heroes."

"Oh, that one. Who are you..." Ella held the picture up to her father, rolling her eyes as though it were the most obvious thing in the world, "Oh. Well, that makes sense. Are you making a collage?" Ella shook her head,

"Nope. I'm writing a story. Or a paper. Whatever you want to call it." Jess laughed,

"You are so your mother and my daughter."

"Well, of course. Who else's daughter would I be?" Jess shook his head,

"It's a figure of speech... Do you want my help?" Ella nodded,

"Would you, daddy? Please?"

"Sure. Clean up and I'll meet you in your room in five minutes." Ella shrieked,

"Thank you, daddy! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"No problem, munchkin."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ella skipped into her house a week and a half later, waving goodbye to her friend Kady and Kady's mother; they'd walked her home an afterschool playdate.

"Mommy! Mommy! C'mere!" Ella called. Rory came running into the foyer; her job at a newspaper had allowed her to work from home many days, and gave Ella the opportunity to spend half of her time at her grandparents' house and half of her time with her mother.

"What? What's the matter, baby?" Rory asked frantically, checking her daughter for cuts and scrapes.

"Nothing's the matter, mommy. What a silly thing to ask." Rory exhaled,

"Well, don't scream like that, then. You scared me."

"Sorry. I was just excited." Rory forced her breathing to return to normal and pushed stray hairs out of her daughter's face,

"What are you so excited about?"

"My project! My hero project that daddy helped me with!"

"What about it?"

"Mrs. Russo gave it back today. I got a 102!" Rory narrowed her eyes,

"And two?"

"I got extra cuz I was the only one in the class who didn't draw a picture or do a collage. She said my orgininality is estrardinry."

"You mean your originality is extraordinary?"

"Something like that."

"I did love that paper."

"And I wrote it all by myself. Daddy just gave me ideas about what stories I should tell and fixed a couple of words. I even got to use a thesaurus."

"Thesaurus, huh? I guess you're ready to write an editorial to go next to mine in the newspaper?"

"I guess so... Can we go to Grandma and Papa's so I can show them?" Rory nodded,

"We're going there for dinner tonight. Papa's making burgers and hot dogs."

"Good." Rory kissed Ella's forehead,

"Go upstairs and change."

"Ok." Ella skipped up the stairs, dropping her backpack by the banister.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"We're here!" Rory announced as she opened the front door, "Anybody here?"

"Hi Rory!" came Ava and Jack's voices from upstairs.

"Hey, guys! Where are mommy and daddy?"

"In here," came Luke's voice from the kitchen. Rory strolled into the kitchen and placed the plate of cake she'd brought on the table.

"Hi, daddy," she greeted, kissing his cheek.

"Hey, princess."

"What smells so good?"

"Rice pilaf. Your mom tasted it last week and decided that she loved it." Rory grinned,

"So, did I tell you what your granddaughter did?"

"No, what did she do?"

"She... actually, she'll probably want to tell you herself... Where's mom?"

"Upstairs getting dressed. There's a stocking crisis I apparently won't understand. Where are Ella and Jess?"

"Car. They'll be in in a second," she picked at the hamburger bun sitting on the counter, "I'm gonna go see mom." She ran up the stairs and as she reached the top, the front door opened.

"Papa!" Ella skipped in. Luke turned around and picked the seven-year-old up.

"Hey, bella. How've you been? I missed you these past two days!"

"I've been great, Papa. How've you been?"

"Can't complain." Jess trailed in, carrying a folder, which he handed to his daughter,

"Hey, Luke."

"Hey, Jess. How's it going?"

"Good, good. But the big news isn't with me. It's with little miss Mariano over here."

"Oh yeah? What's the big news, Miss Mariano?"

"I wrote a paper and I got 102 on it!"

"102?"

"Cuz I wrote a paper and I didn't have to. I could've drawn a picture."

"You wrote a whole paper? You really are your parents' daughter."

"That's what everybody keeps saying to me. I don't get why."

"Can I see the paper?" Ella nodded,

"It's in the folder," she held up the sticker-decorated folder labeled "Ella's greatest works"

"What's it about?"

"Heroes." Luke grinned and turned off the oven, carrying Ella to the kitchen table and sitting down, allowing her to rest on his lap.

"My Hero," he read, "by Lorelai Hannah Mariano... You went by Lorelai? I thought your teacher called you Ella?"

"Mommy writes as Lorelai 'Rory' Gilmore-Mariano. I thought I should do that too. I just left out the 'Ella' part, cuz my teacher already knows my name is Ella."

"Ok," He looked back to the paper and was about to continue reading the paper out loud when Ella interrupted him.

"Papa?"

"Yes, Lorelai Hannah?"

"Number one, don't call me that." Luke grinned,

"Yes, Ella?"

"Better. And number two, don't read out loud."

"Ok." He glanced back down at the paper and began to read to himself.

My Hero by Lorelai Hannah Mariano.

Most kids my age have heroes that they've never met before- Barbie or Batman. I've always thought that was silly. Why would you want to be just like someone you've never met? Like my daddy always says, "You don't know if that's what they're really like."

My hero is someone I know very well. My hero is my Papa Luke.

My Papa Luke is married to my Grandma Lorelai. I call him Papa because when I was a baby, I couldn't say 'Grandpa.' Papa and Grandma have two kids, Jack and Ava, who are my best friends. I play at their house all the time and we hardly ever fight (Even though we do get in trouble sometimes).

My papa is the greatest in the whole world. Some of my favorite things to do with him are to bake cookies, play baseball, and just sit and watch movies. We have old movies of Papa and me asleep on the couch together when I was a little baby.

My favorite thing that my papa and I have ever done together is, last Thanksgiving, Papa let me help him cook dinner. Ava and Jack made the pumpkin pie and papa let me help him cook the turkey. I want to be a diner girl when I grow up, just like my papa is my "diner dude."

The biggest reason Papa is my hero is because of all that he does for our family. Papa is my mommy's daddy, even though she has another one, too, who she doesn't see a lot. He always stands up for us and cooks for us and lets us be ourselves. And no matter how much trouble Ava and I get into, Papa always makes sure that when he tucks us in at night, he kisses our foreheads and tells us "I love you more than..." and we always have to say "anything."

Papa calls me "Ella-bella," or sometimes just "Ella," or sometimes just "Bella." He was the one who gave me my nickname when I was born, so it's ok that he changes it.

I love my papa for everything that he does for my mommy, my daddy, my grandma, Ava, Jack, and me. He works really hard every day to earn money to help our family, and he is still the silly, goofy, loving papa that tucks me in at night and rolls his eyes when I say something that reminds him of my mommy or grandma.

No tights. No capes. No plastic dream houses. Just a blue baseball cap, a buttoned shirt, and a book to read at bedtime. And I wouldn't want any other hero.

Luke looked down at Ella with tears in his eyes.

"So?" she asked excitedly, "You like it?"

"I love it, bel... I love you."

"I love you, too, papa. And I meant it."

"I would hope so."

"Hey, do you think grandma will like it?"

"I think so. I think she'll be proud at the joke about Barbie."

"I know," Ella grinned, "Daddy told me to put that in there for her."


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N- Sorry about the long wait between updates, but this is a story updated as the inspiration hits and it hasn't hit for a while. So, instead of updating once recently, I wrote three chapters and waited a little longer to update all together. Don't be shy about reviewing all three :). Lol. I'm glad you all thought the last chapter was cute. :)_

_Dedicated to: My papa, who says "Latifah" the best of anyone._

_Disclaimer: I only own Jack, Ava, and Ella, and even them I'm just using for a bit._

_**A 'F'antastic Affair**_

"That's bad."

"I know."

"That's really bad."

"I really know."

"That's really, really bad."

"Ava! I really, really know!"

"What are you going to do about it?"

"That I don't know." Ella stared down at the big red mark glaring at her. _F._ Ella Mariano, daughter of Jess and Rory, granddaughter of Luke and Lorelai, had gotten an F on a History test.

"When are you going to tell Rory and Jess?"

"Never."

"What?"

"Never. I'm never telling my mom and dad."

"Don't you have to get it signed?"

"Yes."

"Well, I'm not sure how you're gonna get around telling your mom and dad if you have to get it signed."

"I'll tell them we're learning about the letter F."

"You're too old for 'Sesame Street.'"

"I'll figure something out."

"Good luck."

"Just... Ave?" Ella looked hopefully at Ava, who shook her head,

"Oh, no. Don't ask me to lie to Rory for you. She's your mom. You can lie to her. But she's my sister- I can't do it."

"I wasn't going to ask you to lie to my mom. I was just going to ask you to not tell Jack."

"Why?"

"Because he'll tell Grandma and Papa and they'll tell mom, and then I'll be in trouble. Big trouble."

"Fine. I won't tell my tattletale of a big brother, but you need to tell Rory."

"I will," Ella said, averting her eyes, "Just... when I'm eighteen and going off to college."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Later that night, Ella held the phone lazily against her ear.

"You could draw a line and make it look like an 'A,' like on 'Full House.'" The ten-year-old rolled her eyes,

"Ava! I'm being serious!"

"So am I. It worked for DJ until Jesse saw it, and that was only cuz he'd done it when he was a kid. Just fake it and show it to Rory- she's never done that before in her life. I can promise you that. She won't know the difference and everyone will be happy."

"Ok, A, the 'A' on 'Full House' did _not_ look like an 'A.' It looked like an 'F' with a line. B, those things never work in real life. And C, I thought you didn't want to lie to my mom."

"I never said _I'd _be lying to Rory. _You_ will be."

"Won't work, Ave," Ella held out the paper and stared at it, "I think it's gotten bigger."

"It's growing?"

"I think so." Luke's gruff voice came muffled through the phone,

"Ava! Let's go!"

"Dinner. I gotta go. You're coming over tomorrow, right?"

"If I'm still alive, I'll be there with bells on."

"Jingle, jingle."

"See ya."

"Good luck," Ella clicked off the phone, put it down next to her, and studied the paper in the light. Maybe she'd just go live on a boat.

_Mom, Dad- _

I'm sorry I had to go, but I'm a fugitive now. I'm gonna live on a boat by the bay. Send my love to Grandma and Papa.

Love, Ella.

No, that would never work. She got motion sickness on the swings, let alone on a boat.

Ella snapped her head around and shoved the paper under the keyboard at the sound of a knock on the door.

"Ella, baby," Rory peeked her head in, "We're meeting Daddy at Al's in fifteen minutes. Go wash your hands before we go."

"Ok," Ella breathed, standing up, "I'll be done in a minute."

"I'm just gonna check my e-mail before we go." Relieved, Ella ducked out of her bedroom, confident that the paper was hidden.

As Rory typed, she noticed the keyboard slipping, sliding, and making noises from beneath. She lifted it and picked up the paper she found underneath.

"Ella Mariano," she whispered, "F?" She called out the door, "Ella, can you come in here, please?"

"Sure, mom. What's..." She strolled in to find Rory clutching the 'F' paper, "Oh... Look, mom, I can..."

"Save it, Ella."

"But, mom, I..."

"Ella, no. I don't want to hear it. I don't want excuses."

"Then what do you want?" Rory shook her head,

"I want you in here the rest of the week. You're grounded through Monday."

"I what?"

"You're grounded. That means no special dinner with dad tonight, no TV, no computer, and no hanging out with Ava and Jack after school tomorrow."

"But that's not fair!"

"Lorelai Hannah Mariano, I saw you before this test. You did everything _but_ study for it. You watched TV, you were IMing everyone, you played The Sims. You did everything to make you happy before schoolwork. And now you're paying the price."

"Mom!"

"Do your homework, Ella. I'm going to call dad to tell him to come home," Rory announced, tears threatening to spill over.

As the door to Ella's bedroom shut, she collapsed onto her bed,

"Ella Mariano, fugitive in her own home."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

By nine that night, Ella was going stir crazy. She'd kept herself secluded in her room (not by mandate, but by choice), only leaving to go to the bathroom, had finished her homework an hour earlier, and was now rereading Harry Potter upside down, hoping to find hidden meaning.

Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. She had to get out of the house. According to her brain, she needed to leave before it oozed out of her ears from boredom, and according to her emotions, her parents were being unreasonable. She could hear them watching Friends reruns in their bedroom, and she felt a surge of sadness. This was their nightly ritual. Every night, at nine pm, she'd crawl into bed with her parents, freshly showered and in pajamas, and lay with them, watching old sitcoms until ten, when it was time for Ella to go to bed.

She stood up silently and grabbed her biggest bookbag, haphazardly throwing in her favorite picture of her family, her cd player, an extra pair of pajama bottoms, the miniature quilt her grandmother had made for her, and the Sour Patch Kids she had stored in her top drawer. Pulling the door open slowly, she tip-toed down the stairs, careful not to make a sound as she left the house.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Ella?" Rory knocked on the door to her daughter's room, clutching a mug of hot chocolate, "Ella, baby? You awake?" When she didn't receive any answer, she pushed the door open.

It was pitch black and she tripped over Ella's schoolbag.

"Ow! Ella, move that when you get a chance, please... Ella, I know you're mad at me, but could you answer, please?... Ella, baby, I love you and I don't want you to go to bed mad. I'm turning on the light now, so shield your eyes if you have to." She flipped the light on and turned around.

"Ella?" Rory called to the empty room, "Ella, if you're hiding, come out right now... Ella?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Luke groaned as he reached over the arm of the couch to grab the phone, checking the caller ID.

_Mariano, Jess_.

"Hello?" he clicked the 'talk' button.

"Dad?"

"Hey, Rory. How are you?"

"Daddy, is Ella with you?" Luke sat up at the panic in his daughter's voice,

"What? I haven't seen her. What's the matter, baby?"

"She's... she's missing, dad. I grounded her tonight and then I went in to go see if she was ok a few hours later and... and she was gone. I don't know where she is."

"Rory, sweetheart, listen to me," Luke heard Rory choke back a sob, "I'm going upstairs; I'm going to get Ava to help me look. Your mom is out with Jack getting new cleats. Call her; she'll come home as soon as possible. I'm gonna take Ava and we'll scout out our street," he bound up the stairs towards his daughter's bedroom, "You and Jess search the town square. Send your mother and Jack to the diner and to the neighbors' houses. We'll all meet..." he paused when he thought he heard a coughing noise come from the bedroom on his left- the spare bedroom designated Ella's. He whispered, "Rory? Hold on a sec."

"Dad, what's going on?"

"Just wait, Rory." He picked up a stray baseball bat left by Jack on the stairs and gently pushed open the door to his granddaughter's bedroom. He exhaled as he saw long brown curls peeking over the covers, a tiny form curled up underneath.

"Dad?" He stepped back out,

"I found her."

"You _what_?"

"I found her. She's in her room here." He heard Rory begin to cry,

"Thank you, daddy. I'll be over in a minute to get her."

"Rory, wait."

"What?"

"You coming over right now is just gonna make this worse. You're upset and she's upset and believe it or not, she's ten. She's a preteen. If you come over here now without giving her time away from you, she won't listen and you'll only wind up making matters worse. Give me time to talk to her. She'll respond differently to me. Just... please, Rory."

"Dad..."

"Rory..." Rory sighed,

"Fine. I'll be over in ten minutes, then."

"Rory..."

"A half hour."

"That's my girl. I'm gonna go talk to her. I'll see you in a bit."

"Bye, dad."

Luke strolled in quietly and sat on the bed next to his semi-hidden granddaughter. After a moment of silence, he leaned over,

"Ella?"

"Ella's not here right now. Please leave a message." Luke grinned,

"That was cute when you were five, but it never fooled me," No response, "Ok, Miss Mariano. I can wait. I can stay here all night, but that means tomorrow morning, your grandmother is cooking for Jack and Ava and the house will either burn down or melt."

"Cereal," came Ella's muffled voice.

"Lorelai Danes can burn cereal." There was a pause before Ella poked her head out,

"Why, hello, grandfather! What a pleasant surprise."

"Hello, granddaughter. You wanna tell me what you're doing here?"

"Weeeelll..." she dragged out, sitting up, "Ava borrowed my book from me..."

"Uh-huh. What book?" he asked, unconvinced.

"_The Nanny Diaries_."

"Uh-huh," he nodded skeptically.

"Right. So I came and came up to her room, but she said she left it in _my_ room. So I came in here and I sat down on the bed and next thing I know, I'm asleep."

"Uh... huh. Well, ok, Ella Mariano, that's a terrific bedtime story you just told me. But I never heard the doorbell ring."

"I used my key."

"And you got in without me seeing you?"

"You were out working on your new boat."

"What time?"

"7:30," she shot back; she was used to these verbal spars with her grandfather, and she knew that he worked on his newest boat every night from 7:15-8.

"You tell your mother you were coming over?"

"Yes."

"Ok, Ella. Terrific story. Main problem? I got a call from your mom. She told me you'd gotten mad at each other and when she went into your room, you weren't there."

"I was hiding?"

"Ella..."

"Or I wasn't."

"You wanna tell me what happened?"

"That was a 'you wanna' I don't have a choice in, wasn't it?"

"You bet." Ella sighed,

"Ifailedatest."

"In English, please." She paused,

"I failed a test."

"You _what_?"

"I didn't study and... I bombed. Fifty-two. Mom found out and got mad at me. She grounded me, Papa!"

"I would've done the same if it was Jack or Ava."

"But it's me, Papa! I'm trustworthy! I'll bounce back!"

"So would Jack and Ava," she fell silent, "Ella?"

"I screwed up, Papa. The mighty Lorelai Hannah Mariano has struck out."

"Good. First step is to admit it. Now, the next thing to ask yourself is: so?"

"What?"

"So what? So you screwed up on one test and got in trouble. Big deal. Tomorrow will come, all will be forgotten, and you'll still be you."

"I guess..."

"No. You know. You need to go home, apologize to your mother, and all will be well."

"I dunno, Papa, she was pretty mad."

"Ella, you were upset, your mom was upset. If I know my daughter, she'll come, you'll hug, you'll kiss, you'll be grounded probably for the weekend, and you'll all get over it."

"What about my dad?"

"He'll lecture you, but you knew that." She looked down,

"Thank you, Papa."

"Anytime, kid," he hugged her and kissed her temple, "C'mon, let's get you some hot chocolate before your mom shows up."

"Sure... Hey, Papa?"

"Yeah?"

"If I drew an F and put a line down the side of it- the right side, what would that look like?"

"An F with a line."

"That's what I said! Ava said it'd look like an A."

"No."

"I'm getting her a letter chart for her birthday."


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N- Different chapter, different format. Tell me if you like it._

_A/N 2- Ella acts a little immature towards the beginning of this chapter. But then it gets better. :)_

_Dedicated: Papa, because he buys strawberries just for me. And he knows what that means._

_Disclaimer: I own two more characters as of the end of this chapter, but Amy can have them too if she wants._

**_Dear Diary_**

Dear Diary,

My name is Ella. I'm thirteen years old, and you, my dear diary, were given to me by my journalist parents to soften the blow of the news that they told me today. Yes, today, Saturday the fourteenth of January, my whole world changed. Oh yes, _today_, I was told that my parents are adopting.

Adopting! Can you imagine? At their age? And they tell me, "Ella, sweetie, you're gonna be a big sister! You don't have to pretend with your American Girl dolls anymore!" I haven't played with my American Girl Dolls since I was nine. (Except for the occasional dress-up day, but those are Ava and my secret.) And mom and dad know that.

But the worst thing about it isn't even that they're doing it. (I'm really pretty ok with the adoption itself, actually. Not 100, but I need time.) It's that they're doing it and have been for months without telling me! According to dad, they've been on the waiting list since last February. "This stuff takes forever a lot of times, baby. We didn't want to get your hopes up that it would happen. A lot of times it doesn't." Get my hopes up, dad? How about mentally preparing myself for a little brother or sister! I mean, it'd be fine (I wouldn't be a 100 percent ok, but I'd have dealt) if they'd decided to adopt and gave me plenty of notice, but just jumping out and going "Hey! You're a big sister now!" Women have 9-month pregnancies for a reason! To let people get used to the idea of being responsible for a new human being! This way it's like 'Hey, by the way, this is your sibling. Love him/her.'

Now, don't get me wrong, I have nothing against adoption. I did a research report on it in seventh grade and it's actually an amazing process. It gives a child who wouldn't usually have love and opportunities love and opportunities. It's great and I'm glad they decided to adopt from a country like Russia. Score one for parents. One of my best friends is adopted from Russia. Gabriel. Maybe I should talk to him.

I don't know. On one hand, I'm excited at the prospect of having a brother or sister. As close as I am with Jack and Ava, they have a different relationship that I probably couldn't have with either of them. On the other hand, I need time to mentally prepare myself for midnight feedings and diaper changes.

Wasn't something like this supposed to happen yesterday?

Confusedly yours,  
Ella Mariano

Dear Diary,

Great. Now I have mom on my case.

"Ella, why are you moping?"

Why am I moping, mom? Maybe because you sprung on me that instead of homework and VH1, I now need to get used to burping and Barney?

I know what anybody watching me is thinking: why doesn't she talk to her mom about it? Her mom's always been understanding. Her mom's never given her any reason to doubt that she'd be able to talk.

The answer to that is: I don't know if she'd understand anymore. Maybe I should just keep it to myself.

"Look, Ella, this is the notice telling us they've found a child for us. Oh, look, Ella! Pictures!.. I wonder what this envelope's for."

Uh-oh. Pictures. Gotta go fawn.

Sigh,  
Ella

Diary,  
Oh. My. Sweet. Hendrix.

This is not what I expected.

This is not what anyone expected.

I'd kinda come almost completely to grips with the fact that I was getting a baby sibling. I'd never let anyone know this, but I've been sewing a quilt for new baby Mariano (a handy skill I picked up from Grandma Lorelai).

But this?

Ella Mariano, sister to not one, but TWO little kids?

That second envelope. A notice.

_Dear Mr. and Mrs. Mariano and family, _

We are pleased to hear that you are choosing adoption as your method of rearing children. While we know that you've already accepted the adoption of one child, please review the case of this child's older brother. We choose, in as many cases as possible, to keep sibling sets together, and in this case, the seven-month-old girl you've been matched with has a two-year-old brother. If you would be willing to adopt both the little girl and her brother, please contact us at...

The rest is blank in my mind. And mom called dad right up and they both said yes immediately. Immediately! Can you believe that?

Now I have a brother and a sister. And yeah, while it feels amazing to be saving these kids from an "uncertain future," there's still something nagging at me. In the back of my mind, there's still something lurking.

Maybe after a nap...

Oh boy,  
Ella

DIARY!  
Ugggggggh. Seven G's. That's how big this is.

Ava.

My best friend in the world, Ava, and she's... UGGGGGGGGH! That was eight in caps. UGH.

I can't believe her. I can't believe that she would even dare to say what she said. That kid has guts. Fear-Factor-Eat-A-Bug-In-A-Box-Of-Nails guts.

We were walking to the diner today and Ava looks at me,

"You ok?"

"Yeah, Ave, I'm fine."

"You don't seem ok."

"I am."

"Well, I mean, you seem ok around Rory and Jess... or at least better around them than around my parents."

"What?" At this point, we'd reached the diner, and I was staring in, watching my Papa work.

"This whole adoption thing. It's really getting to you, isn't it?"

"What? No! I'm excited to have a little brother and sister."

"I didn't say that. I know you're excited. They're your own personal playmates. But you're nervous."

"Wouldn't you be?"

"Not for the same reasons you are."

"What?"

"You. You're upset, and I'm pretty sure it's because you're worried about your... How should I put this?"

"You shouldn't," I interrupted. But she kept going,

"Your... status in the family."

"WHAT?"

"Ella, give it up. You're worried. You've always been the baby in the family, your parents' only child, and my parents' only grandchild. You've been dad's 'one and only' since you were born. You're worried you're not gonna be... special... anymore."

"Ava, I don't know what you're driving at here, but you're wrong."

"No I'm not. You have the look in your eyes. You're worried that the babies are gonna come and that, not your parents, because you know they love you no matter what- you're their oldest, you're the one exactly like them, you're the one who has days where you hang out with your mom all day, but my parents, will stop loving you like they do."

I had tears in my eyes- I didn't realize, but I did...

"You're waaaay offbase here, Ave."

"No I'm not. I've seen the way you've been acting. You avoid the subject of the babies completely when you're talking to my mom and dad. When you're with Rory and Jess you have no problems. It's babies this and babies that and 'Oh, I'm knitting a quilt for the babies.'"

"Sewing with clothing patches... And how did you know that!"

"Please, Ella. Last time I was in your room, it was laid out on your bed with a picture of the baby next to it."

"That doesn't mean anything, Ava."

"But that's besides the point. Not only do you stay away from talking about your new brother and sister when you're talking to my parents, but you've been acting funny around them. My dad offered to take you fishing the other day and you said no. You've never said no to fishing with dad before. And you said no to shopping with mom. And you randomly run up and hug the two of them and then run away- no explanations, no staying to talk afterwards. It's almost as if you're trying to distance yourself from them to make the 'inevitable downfall of Ella Mariano's world' soften its blow."

"Ok, a, you're talking like a Chinese proverb, and b, you're wrong."

"No, I'm not. Ella, I know you better than anyone else."

"Well, as well as you know me, you're wrong."

"You keep saying that, but the way you're acting is telling me otherwise." At that point, I just groaned and ran off. Who made Ava a fourteen-year-old Freud?

I mean, who does she think she is? Just because I've been acting weird lately, doesn't mean that I'm worried that... It just doesn't mean that I'm worried.

I'm gonna go read. That should calm me down.

Betrayed,  
Ella

Diary,

She's right. Ava was right. My biological aunt, my emotional cousin, Ava Hayleigh Danes, was right.

I am worried about what's gonna happen to me.

I'm less worried about my relationship with Grandma. We share a name, for Lennon's sake. Grandma is my grandma by blood, and I know that she's not gonna stop loving me when the new babies come. There's still a fear of losing her to my new siblings, but it's not huge.

But Papa? I'm not his blood granddaughter. I'm his semi-adopted daughter's eldest daughter- you know, the teenager sulking in the background. The new babies are gonna be perfect, quiet little children who do what they're told and are the grandchildren of appropriate ages for a man his age.

Me? I'm the thirteen-year-old with 37-year-old parents and 53-and-54-year-old grandparents. At least they'll be near the appropriate age of being grandparents when the new babies come. A 40 and 41-year-old set of grandparents is not common, and I know it, but that's what I had when I was born. These kids are gonna be almost three and almost one with grandparents of a much more suitable age.

I don't know anymore...

Tear,  
Ella

Dear Diary,

Ok, so I know it's been about three weeks since I've written. That's because things have gotten hectic around here. Right now I'm in my room at Grandma and Papa's house, with a whole bunch of old pictures and videos lying around me.

So, let me recap what's going on here.

Since I last wrote, things have been weird. I've still been acting sort of oddly around Grandma and Papa, but around Mom and Dad I've been much more pleasant. They know now all about how I'm really very excited about Erin and Lucas...

Oh, that's right. I still haven't documented this. After much debate, Mom, Dad, and I have named the babies.

My little brother is to be known as Lucas James Ilya Mariano, or L.J. for short, and my little sister is Erin Lital Anya Mariano. We kept their Russian names as middle names and as reminders for them of their heritage.

Right now, Mom and Dad are in Russia; they'll be there for the rest of the week, and I couldn't go because I had school. I cried when I found out I couldn't go with them. I want to meet my baby brother and sister. (My past few weeks have been planning on my part, "Can Erin's wardrobe be all purple? I think pink is overdone." "Do you think L.J. will like sports? Can we make his room a baseball room?" and baby shopping. Definitely a lot of fun.)

So I'm here all week. I'm staying at Grandma and Papa's which definitely has its perks. A, I get homemade breakfast every morning in addition to the Poptart I take to school with me. B, I'm forced to act normal around Grandma and Papa and Ava's even gotten me to calm down and realize that nothing's gonna change between me and them.

She made me sit down and watch hours of home videos, including Halloweens where we were dressed as Larry (Jack), Moe (Ava), and Curly (bald baby me), another where we were dressed as Bart, Lisa, and Maggie Simpson, and one where Jack was dressed as Ricky Ricardo, Ava as Lucy, and me as Little Ricky. Papa grabbed me before mom and Grandma could put a wig on me. He fixed my pigtails and held my hand the whole time, keeping that thing away from my head. It looked like a dead animal; Grandma had pulled it out of the attic.

In another video it was my fifth birthday and Papa cooked an entire barbeque for the whole town. He (or rather, Grandma) called it "Luke's diner free-of-charge- courtesy of Ella Mariano." He even did tricks with the magicians for Ava, Jack, and me.

One video had me playing little league (which I've recently given up to play on the school team). I tripped and fell while running the bases and I got a big scratch on my nose. He picked me up and carried me over to his truck and pulled out a first aid kit and cleaned me up, kissed my nose, and gave me a cookie and juice box he had stored for me in the back.

After I watched the videos, I went over to the diner and helped Papa out for a little while, and then just sat and had dinner with him- just the two of us. And before I left to come back here and do my homework, he kissed my cheek and whispered in my ear,

"Glad to have you back, bella." And I blushed and went,

"Papa, I never left." And he just said,

"Glad to have you back," and smiled this smile that always leads to any problem being fixed. I swear, that man has magical powers.

Three more days until my babies come home!  
Ella

Dear diary,  
Best. Day. Ever.

Oh my sweet Hendrix, today was amazing.

Ok, so, we (Ava and I) woke up at five this morning, and we proceeded to throw things at Jack's bedroom door to wake him up and then went in and jumped on Grandma and Papa's bed.

None of them seemed to be too thrilled, and Papa even pulled out the plane information to show us that the plane didn't land until three this afternoon, but I told him I couldn't sleep, and at that point, Grandma had already fallen back to sleep, so he cooked us breakfast and then went back to bed for another three hours.

So Ava and I went over to my house and set up all the decorations, including the "Welcome L.J. and Erin" banner that we made instead of doing our homework last week. Even by then, it was only eight o'clock, so Ava and I went into L.J.'s room, and then Erin's to check that everything was safe and baby-proofed. We turned on the radio and laid down to talk on the floor and we both wound up falling asleep. At eleven, my cell phone rang and it woke us up. It was Papa. He started to laugh when we told him where we were and what had happened and he told us to come back and have lunch and then we'd head over, pick up a couple of things for the party, and then go pick up my family from the airport.

So we go back to Ava's house and Papa made us lunch and we ate really quickly and ignored as Jack stared at us in what appeared to be anger. So when I got up, I pinched his cheek and whispered,

"Have a nice nap last night, Jacky?" really quietly so Papa wouldn't hear and get mad at me for teasing Jack. Please, Jack knows I love him.

So we all piled into the van that mom and dad bought before they left that had the carseats in the middle seat. Jack, Ava, and I all sat in the seat farthest towards the back and Ava and I kinda passed out within fifteen minutes of the car being in motion. Grandma and Papa even ran in and got the stuff from Doose's without waking us up, and they left Jack in the car with us while we slept.

So we woke up just as the car pulled up to the airport and we went in to the baggage claim. We hung out for a while since we were an hour early, and Ava, Grandma and I played a couple of games of telephone while Jack and Papa played cards.

When Grandma and I ran over for the seventh time to see if the plane was on time, it said it had landed, so we ran over to the escalator and waited for three minutes before we saw Mom and Daddy making their way down the escalator.

I can't even explain it. It was amazing. Mom was holding Erin and Daddy was holding L.J., and let me tell you something, they were different than their pictures.

Erin is this gorgeous little girl with blonde hair and green eyes and a tiny little nose. When Mom came over, I hugged her and then put my arms out for Erin and she went right to me. It was incredible. She's eight months old and she's so little and she crawls. It's amazing. We had to watch her the entire time.

And L.J.? He talks! He knows a few words of English and when Mom and Dad told him "That's Ella. Your sister." He went, "Sister?" And I smiled and tears were flowing away and he hugged me! My little brother flat-out hugged me the first time he saw me! It was amazing.

Grandma was crying and Papa was so happy I saw him wipe away a few tears and he winked at me to tell me to keep it under the hat.

So we went home to my house and we set up a little family party and Mom was shocked at the banner Ava and I had made and she went "So, did your homework get done last week?" And I just smiled at motioned at L.J. and went, "He's worth it, isn't he?" And mom nodded and said, "Never again, though."

So around eight we put them to bed and Mom laid with L.J. in his room and Erin fell asleep in Daddy's arms. We put her in her crib and I realized, as much as I missed Mom and Daddy this week, it was a good thing that they went to Russia this past week. Erin and L.J. were so comfortable around them that they really weren't too overwhelmed by all the changes and L.J., before he went to sleep, went "Night mommy."

We all sat around for a while afterwards; I felt so much better knowing they were in the house and safe. So after Grandma, Papa, and Jack left (Ava slept over after talking (whining) to Papa, "But I'm Rory's sister! And L.J. and Erin's aunt! I deserve to make sure the transition is smooth!")

So as they left, we all hugged and said goodbye for the night and when I went to go hug Papa goodbye, he whispered,

"Happy?" and I went,

"Yeah. Very." And so he goes,

"You coming to help tomorrow?" And I nodded and he says, "Perfect." and winks at me again, like he's trying to tell me something.

So I said goodbye and went upstairs and looked into L.J. and Erin's rooms and just whispered, "Perfect."

So now I'm going to bed, because I want to be up bright and early for the babies tomorrow.

Love,  
Big sister Ella Mariano


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N- Aaaand here's number three. If you haven't read the last two chapters before this (IE you opened up the new one and jumped to the last chapter, assuming that's all that was updated), read them! I updated three chapters at once for this story. Sigh, back to work on Hello Sunshine._

_Dedicated: Papa. You coulda seen that one coming._

_Disclaimer: I own L.J., Erin, Ava, Ella, and Jack, all whose names I spent hours agonizing over. So if Amy takes them (which is fine, whatever), just gimme credit for the names._

**_Adventures in Babysitting_**

"Ella! Eeeeellllllaaaaa!" Wiping her hands off on her apron, she turned around to face the little boy at the counter.

"Lucas James, what did Papa and I say about yelling in the diner?"

"Don't do it?"

"That's right." She turned back around to pour orange juice for her little brother, but she missed the cup as the yell permeated the air again.

"L.J.! What are you doing?"

"Yelling."

"Why?" He shrugged,

"Grandma and Mommy do it." Ella sighed,

"L.J., you know Papa doesn't like you yelling in the diner."

"I know."

"So why do you keep doing it?" The little boy pointed at his plate,

"I'm done." Ella's eyes went wide,

"That's what you needed to tell me?"

"Yes."

"Geez, baby brother, you could've just told me. I can hear you fine."

"Sorry," he frowned. Ella smiled, leaned over, and kissed him on the forehead,

"It's ok, baby. Just no more, alright?" L.J. nodded,

"Ok." As Ella cleared his plate, the bell over the front door jingled.

"Luuuuuuucaaaaas!" Ella rolled her eyes as L.J. grinned back at his grandmother,

"Ella says no yelling, Grandma." Lorelai kissed his head through his hair,

"Does she? Well then, I guess someone should bring us pie and then we'll stop, right?" Ella rolled her eyes,

"Grandma, he's been yelling in the diner and it's your fault. Don't teach him that."

"What can I say? He's a smart kid. He picks up on how to get what he wants." Ella sighed,

"You're lucky Papa's at Doose's."

"Is he? Will you cook me my food then?"

"What? No, I'm just a waitress. I don't cook, you know that."

"No. I know you learned to cook from your Papa and when you cook with him at home, it comes out incredible. So if he's not here, the next best thing is you."

"I'm not supposed to cook _here_."

"I won't tell if you won't." Ella shook her head,

"Maybe next time you won't encourage your grandson to yell in the diner." Lorelai gasped,

"Mean."

"Yeah, yeah. Where's mom?"

"Trying to get your sister off of the swings."

"Again? Why does mom even bother to take her to the park anymore?"

"She loves it."

"Mom or Erin?" Lorelai shrugged and looked over at the picture L.J. was drawing.

The bells rang above the door and Luke walked in, carrying Erin, Rory trailing behind.

"Finally got her off the swings?" Lorelai asked, motioning at the eighteen-month-old.

"She saw dad and decided she wanted to go with him."

"She loves her papa. What can I say?" Luke grinned.

"It's a Mariano girl thing," Ella smiled, kissing her grandfather and then her sister on the cheek.

"It's also a Danes' girl thing," Lorelai said, kissing Luke sweetly on the lips.

"Eww!" L.J. groaned as Rory covered both his and Ella's eyes.

"Ew! Ew! Ew, Papa!" Erin giggled, clapping her tiny hands together.

"Gimme my kid," Rory sighed as she took Erin from Luke.

"Mommy, Ella said that she couldn't make Grandma pie cuz she teached me how to yell."

"Taught, baby."

"And she's right, Elj. No yelling in the diner."

"K, Papa." Erin began fidgeting and tried to slide off of her mother's lap, but Rory was quicker and grabbed the little girl, pulling her back up. Erin began to cry and L.J. leaned over to his older sister,

"Erin's crying."

"I see that. Can you make her feel better?" L.J. nodded, a serious look in his eye and leaned over to the baby,

"Erin, don't be sad. No crying, Erin." He kissed her on the temple and she watched him with interest, her crying subsiding a little. Lorelai smiled and took the baby from Rory, dancing with her for a moment.

"That was very nice, Elj," Rory told her son, pulling him onto her lap and kissing his forehead.

"Yes it was. See if you can get your papa to give us pie if you do that." L.J. smiled,

"That's silly, Grandma." Luke brought Lorelai a piece of pie, which she happily fed alternatingly to herself and Erin.

"Oh, Ella," Rory started, "I have a question."

"Shoot."

"Would you be able to babysit Saturday night?" Ella nodded,

"Sure."

"Good. Daddy and I have that writer's convention to go to and Grandma can watch them during the day, but at night..."

"I have a reader's convention at the inn," Lorelai told her, swallowing a bite of her pie.

"Hilarious, Grandma. Why can't you babysit at night really?"

"I told you. There's a convention of readers coming to the Dragonfly."

"Seriously?" Rory and Lorelai both nodded and Erin, giggling to herself, followed suit, "So you're going to a writer's convention and you're hosting a reader's conventon?"

"Yup."

"Weird."

"You said it, Sam Winchester."

"What time is Ava coming over, Grandma?"

"Tonight?"

"No. Saturday."

"She's not." Ella narrowed her eyes at her grandmother,

"She's not?"

"Nope. She's got a date." Ella giggled nervously,

"Oh boy. Umm... then when's Jack coming over?" Lorelai shook her head,

"Study group at the Hartford Library."

"And where's Papa gonna be?"

"John and Mike can't come in, so your Papa has to work," Lorelai explained, fixing Erin's headband.

"So it's just gonna be me..."

"And Erin and L.J."

"Oh."

"Is that gonna be a problem?"

"Umm... no... I just... I don't usually babysit by myself at night..."

"I could get Miss Patty or Babette or Gypsy or..."

"No, no. I can do it."

"You sure?"

"Yeah." Lorelai laughed,

"No, really, are you? Cuz I think your mother was about to go to Kirk for babysitting." L.J. smiled and leaned up to whisper into his grandmother's ear. Lorelai grinned,

"Yeah, Elj. Your markers do fit nicely up his nose."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Ella? Ella, we're here!" Lorelai's voice. Ella ran down the stairs to find Lorelai, L.J., and Erin, each holding an ice cream cone, the younger two seemingly having bathed in it.

"Grandma, what did you do?"

"Grandma gave us ice cream," L.J. told her proudly, holding up his chocolate cone.

"Yeah, Grandma just gave them ice cream," Lorelai grinned guiltily. Ella sighed,

"I can see that. Did your chins and foreheads enjoy it?" L.J. looked confused, but ignored the comment,

"Where's Daddy?"

"Daddy's out for the night, Elj. You know that."

"No I don't."

"Yeah, baby, you do. Remember? Mommy and Daddy left this morning and told you that they were gonna be back after you went to sleep, so you were gonna spend the day with Grandma and then at night, Ella was gonna put you to sleep?"

"No! No sleep!" Ella shook her head,

"No, L.J. No sleep yet."

"Barney!" Erin screeched, dipping her finger into the ice cream. Ella sighed as Lorelai watched on,

"After we get you cleaned up." Lorelai grinned,

"Here, I'll help you." She grabbed L.J. and held him upside down, his blonde hair flopping underneath as he giggled uncontrollably.

After they got cleaned up, Lorelai and Ella set L.J. and Erin down in front of a Barney DVD.

"You'll be ok?"

"I'll be fine."

"I'm available if you absolutely need me."

"I know."

"I can put those readers down with _War and Peace_. It'll be like riding a rollercoaster for them."

"I'll be fine, Grandma."

"Seriously. Buzz me if you need me." Ella shook her head, knowing she'd never interrupt her grandmother at the convention.

"Ok, Grandma. I'll be fine. I'm fourteen now. I'm a big girl already. I can handle myself." Lorelai sighed,

"Alright, beautiful. I love you. Remember..."

"If I need anything, call you! I know!"

"Bye, El." She hugged her eldest granddaughter goodbye and then moved over to her two younger grandchildren.

"Hey Pebbles, Bam-Bam, look up," L.J. and Erin obediently looked away from the tv to their grandmother, "You two listen to your sister. No fights about bathtime, bedtime, or any other time she designates important. Got it?" They nodded and L.J. repeated,

"Got it."

"I love you two."

"Love you, grandma," L.J. echoed as he kissed her cheek and Erin sang,

"Love oo!"

After Lorelai left (slowly but surely, Ella got her out the door), Ella sat down and Erin climbed onto her lap.

They watched the rest of the DVD and by the time it was over, it was 5:30 and time for the youngest members of the Mariano clan to have dinner. Ella made Macaroni and Cheese for her brother and sister, which L.J. poked at and Erin pushed onto the floor.

After twenty minutes and finally succeeding in feeding both children some dinner, she lifted the messy Erin on her hip and took L.J.'s hand, leading them both to the upstairs bathroom. She gave them a bubble bath and quickly got them out of the tub, changing them into pajamas.

They played downstairs for a while, had a snack, and were led upstairs by Ella to brush teeth, read a story, and go to bed.

L.J. went to bed fairly easily, allowed to look at a book as he fell asleep. However, when she put Erin into her crib, Erin looked up at her with sad eyes,

"Daddy?"

"Daddy's coming home later, baby."

"Mommy?"

"Mommy's gonna be home later, too." Erin burst into tears and began to throw a tantrum,

"MOMMY! DADDY! NO SLEEP! MOMMY! DADDY!"

"Erin Lital, cut that out."

"NO!" she swatted at Ella's hand and Ella recoiled,

"Erin! No hitting!"

"NO!" She threw herself onto the mattress and Ella sighed, making sure the padding on the side of the crib was adjusted, so Erin couldn't hurt herself.

After Ella fetched her a bottle, Erin calmed down and soothed herself to sleep, and Ella was able to go into her room and do her homework. She clicked on the tv, but turned the volume to low.

At around nine o'clock, she heard a noise.

_Click_.

Ella looked up, but found nothing. She shrugged it off.

A few minutes later-

_Squeeeeak._

She looked out the door. Nothing.

Ten minutes later-

_Creeeak._

She turned up the sound on her tv, glancing out her bedroom door.

_My imagination. It's just my... is that a shadow? Is someone here?... No. My imagination. That's all it is._

She got up and ran to the door and proceeded to turn on all the lights in the house, save for her siblings' rooms. She hurried back to her room and turned the sound on theTV up louder.

She was fine for a half hour or so, but around a quarter to ten, she could've sworn she heard a car pull up front. She closed her eyes and pretended she didn't hear it.

She pretended she imagined the footsteps crunching on the gravel outside.

She hoped she hadn't really heard the front door open.

"Mom?" she called out weakly, "Daddy?"

If it really was them (which it shouldn't have been; they weren't expected home until midnight), they wouldn't have been able to hear her anyway.

She shut her eyes closed at the sound of footsteps through the house.

"L.J.?" she whispered, "Is that you?"

She held her breath as the footsteps approached; there was no way it could've been L.J. The footsteps were much too heavy.

She closed her eyes and thought about darting to her siblings' rooms, but the footsteps weren't nearing there. They were nearing her room. She'd just plead to take any money or anything of value they had in the house and leave her and the babies alone. That should work, right?

She held her breath and felt salty tears roll down her cheek as the footsteps stopped outside of her bedroom door and the doorknob turned.

She forced bravery and stared at the door as it opened slowly to reveal a large man, roughly the size of...

"PAPA!" She ran and threw her arms around her grandfather and collapsed, sobbing, into his arms.

"Ella! What's the matter? What happened?"

"I don't know, Papa. I just... I put L.J. and Erin to bed and then I heard noises and I turned on all the lights and I thought someone was breaking into the house or that I forgot to move the spare key or something. I just... I got really scared, Papa."

"Oh, bella, it's ok. I'm here. You're fine. L.J.'s fine. Erin's fine. Shh." He led her to her bed and sat down next to her, allowing her to collapse into his chest as he hugged her.

"What happened? You stay home alone all the time and you're always fine."

"I think it was cuz I knew no one was around. You were working and Grandma was working and Mom and Daddy were in the city and Ava and Jack were both in Hartford and I knew if something happened I didn't have anyone to go to." Luke squeezed her tightly,

"Ella, if you're ever in trouble, you can call me or Grandma even if we're at work. You know that."

"I didn't want to bother you."

"Ella..." She let out a sob,

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry. I guess it's a good thing I decided to come check on you on my way home from work. You want me to stay here with you til your parents come home?"

"Could you?"

"Sure. Let's go hang out in the den. I saw a few of Erin's toys that were left out." Ella grinned,

"You'd forget about Po and Lala too if your little sister fingerpainted with Mac n' cheese." Luke smiled down at his granddaughter, dropping a kiss on her head,

"I did last week."


End file.
